Box Elder Vase

My second Box Elder turning! Here’s the process of creating an end grain vase. I’d been sketching like any good artist should do and became fixated on a vase design that was waiting for the right piece of wood to come around. When I acquired the Box Elder tree, I knew there would be a vase in my near future. I began with a section about 4.5″ square by 9″ long and went to town!

Roughing out a piece of wood is one of the most exciting things about turning! I can’t get over all the surprises and amazing grain patterns that can be found in lumber. Needless to say, I was rather ecstatic to see these streaks of red show up!

On the other side are more interesting grain patterns caused from a branch intersection.

At this point, I’ve completed the rough shaping am pretty happy with the grain patterns in the piece. All that is left for the outside of the form is to carefully refine that profile and sand until silky smooth!

I used Abranet sandpaper for the vase. This piece of wood was so wet when I initially put it on the lathe that I was getting a shower while turning it! These conditions will gum up traditional sandpapers almost instantly so Abranet is almost required for sanding wet wood

With the outside of the vase sanded it’s time to focus on the inside of the vase. I could take the simple way out of this task by drilling out the inside with a forstner bit, but no. I hand hollowed the vase so that the weight of the piece reflected the visually light appearance that is created by the graceful curves of this piece.

Here’s the finished product! Of course it’s for sale too!

Thanks for reading! If you have comments or questions, please don’t hesitate to ask.

If you’d like a custom vase or other woodturning made, I am available for commission work.

Knots aren’t always harder… They’re just different. When hollowing, you kinda build a relationship with the piece… How hokey does that sound? You really tune in to the characteristics of the wood because all you’re relying on is the sound of the wood while it’s being cut and the vibrations/feel of the tool against the wood. You instantly know when something is different in the grain structure of the piece you’re turning because it sounds and feels different. The knot in this piece was actually mostly void inside the vase. I believe this was an areas that small branches had been repeatedly trimmed from because the majority of that feature was bark that had grown in on itself.

I left the bottom of this vase about 1/4 – 3/8 thick so that the bottom would be weighted a bit. I made the wall thickness consistently 1/8 inch thick from the rim to base where it transitions into the bottom.

I’m so glad you like the vase! The red streaking is what box elder is known for! It’s so vibrant when first cut, but will inevitably fade over time.

Check out my YouTube channel occasionally as I plan (hope) to keep uploading videos of turning projects. Let me know if you have more questions about the process or tools!

Thanks for your detailed response, Mike. I found it very helpful to read. I’ve been busy digging out huge rocks in our yard and preparing a small lavender farm. I found some old manzanita roots, the thick part of the wood people like to use for projects. Fun surprise!

I’m feeling timid with the oak log I mentioned. The possibilities are endless, so it’s hard getting started. I think I just need to take a deep breath, choose what I want to create, and go for it.

I totally understand being timid about using lumber. Sometimes it is best to just take the plunge and get started. The climate around here is such that, if you leave logs outside for too long (especially maples, cherry, etc.) they’ll become unusable. I try to not just make something for the sake of the wood not rotting, but also don’t hesitate too long because then I’ll neither have the bowl I was planning on or the wood to make it with 🙂